Education and Employment in the European Union

Professor Dr Dimitris N. Chorafas is an academic and consultant. He is a member of the New York Academy of Sciences and visiting faculty to the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne (EPFL). He has been a Fulbright Scholar and has taught in 10 universities around the world. During his career, Dr Chorafas has been a consultant to the board of UBS, Bank of Scotland, Commerzbank, Istituto Bancario Italiano, Credito Commerciale, Banca Provinciale Lombarda, First Austrian Bank, Italcementi, AEG-Telefunken, Osram, GE Bull, and a number of other companies. Over 8,000 executives around the world have attended his seminar programme. In 1992, in conjunction with the Swiss Academies of Sciences, he established his Foundation which grants awards to the best PhD students at 25 universities worldwide. Dr Chorafas has authored 160 books on engineering, mathematics, banking and finance, his most recent being 'Globalization's Limits' and 'The Business of Europe is Politics' (both Gower, 2009) his forthcoming book 'Energy, Environment, Natural Resources and Business Competitiveness', completing the collection, will be available in 2011.

• I: The European Union's Educational Challenge; 1: Education in the European Union; 2: Back to Basics: What it Means to Educate People; 3: A Sense of Leadership in Education; 4: The Devil's Advocate in University Business; II: Innovation: The Synergy of Education and Employment; 5: Research, Development and Innovation; 6: The EU Research and Development Challenge; III: Employment is an Opportunity, Not a Right; 7: Employment Means Different Things to Different People; 8: Wages, Salaries and the Destruction of the EU'S Middle Class; 9: Ambitious Plans Run into Reality; 10: The Continuing Search for Miracle Solutions; IV: Pensions and the Social Safety Net; 11: The Principle of Social Insurance; 12: Demographic Changes and Longevity Risk

'Professor Chorafas evaluates modern education and its impact on business through the eyes of a pursuer of excellence. He brings together numerous arguments in favor of a simple, yet easily forgotten principle: There is no substitute for quality. He does not hesitate to go against the river, but before questioning his views you should think twice, because Professor Chorafas has at his side a database of unparalleled experience and knowledge. This is a book which should be carefully read by academicians, politicians, and aspiring students.' Professor Miltiades E. Anagnostou, National Technical University of Athens